How to deal with loss
by Time's fatal
Summary: AU - "Uh, guys...so I'm guessing I have a lot to catch up on, huh?"
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Kyo Kara Maou belongs to Tomo Takabayashi and others

**Chapter 1: De Nile, is not just a river in Egypt **

"...So you're still coming right?"

Yuri jerked, swiftly looking up at his girlfriend's inquisitive face. "Ah, sure. Tomorrow Saturday?"

Minami rewarded him with a beaming smile. "Yes! Better be there by five AM okay? The line is sure to be long, and we want to be one of the first in."

"I heard the rollercoaster is over three feet higher than Kingka-Da. Broke the Guinness Records!" exclaimed another classmate.

"Nah, we're more keen on the Water Dragon ride they're featuring. It's the most exciting ride they have. That reminds me, better bring your swimsuits or extra clothing!" Minami cautioned.

"It's a date!" whooped Saito, the class clown. "Amusement park! Amusement park! Heeere we come!"

XXX

"You're not annoyed are you? I mean, I know it was supposed to be a date, but Haruka, that nosybody, got wind of it and invited herself and practically everyone in 2A."

"Mmm, no, not really. The more, the merrier right? I just hate waking up so early," Yuri groaned. "On a weekend too, there should be laws against that!"

Minami laughed, chin-length hair swaying silkily as she shook her head at Yuri. "Just ask Jennifer-obaa-san to wake you up early. She never fails to do so."

"No, thank you," Yuri shuddered. "Her methods should be considered cruel and unusual."

Chuckling, they walked in companionable silence for the rest of the way to her house. Nothing—not rain, snow or natural disaster—could sway him from his self-appointed task of bringing her safely home from school. Even that one time he was laid up at home because of that bug going around, he mustered the sheer will to meet her pale and shaking by the school gate.

_Miles away again,_ Minami thought affectionately, slanting a glance through her lashes at Yuri, who seemed to have forgotten he had someone by his side as he absently meandered in the right direction. It was an oddity she had come to accept—and didn't really mind—about her boyfriend. He'd lose track of time, adrift in his own world, then snap out of it with a gentle nudge, bouncing back twice as cheery.

"Wah, I can smell barbecue! Your family's having an outdoor cookout," he exclaimed, and true enough, smoke was wafting out from their backyard.

"Wanna stay a while?" she asked. "I'm sure there'll be plenty of food. Ren misses you too," she teased, referring to her baby brother's near-worship of Yuri.

"Tempting, but better not. Shiori would freak out if I stayed out past curfew," he grimaced.

"Okay, see you tomorrow then." Leaning over, she gave him a peck on the cheek, causing Yuri to blush and startle, as usual, which never failed to amuse her.

"Right. Tomorrow!" He bounded a few steps, turned to wave goofily, then ran all the way home. It made Minami laugh, as she knew it was meant to, and she headed inside her house in a good mood.

XXX

_Cheater! _

Yuri snorted, hearing the familiar refrain inside his head. _Thanks Wolfram, _he thought half crossly,_ Minami and I have been going steady for half a year now, and I can't go beyond a kiss on the cheek without reflexively looking over my shoulder in terror. _

_Wimp! _

"Not a wimp," Yuri grumbled under his breath, slowing down from his one-man marathon to a shuffle, not really in a hurry to reach home and fend off Shiori's overzealous coddling since their final return from Shin Makoku.

_Since... _

"Aaaargh! Not thinking about that!" he yelled while clutching his head—then gasping belatedly in awareness of where he was (i.e.: crouched on his heels in the middle of the street), and the leery looks directed at him by passers-by for the wonderful spectacle he was making of himself.

"Ehehe...exams are so stressful..." Giving a weak grin to all, he hightailed it out of there.

He could always go straight to his room and lock the door against his exasperating brother.

XXX

"Yuri, you open this door right now!" Shiori banged on the door and rattled the doorknob. _Stubborn brat, _he fumed. _No use for it but to bring out my secret weapon! _He took out his wallet triumphantly.

...

...

"Shiori dear," Jennifer exclaimed, "aren't you mistaking the doorjamb for an ATM machine?" She crouched down beside him to peer at his handiwork.

"Not so loud Mum!" Shiori shushed her. "I'm trying to jiggle the door open with my credit card," he explained in a whisper.

"I can hear you," Yuri's muffled voice emerged from the door. "Give it up, it hasn't worked the past dozen times before, it's not gonna work now."

"Yuri, open up!"

"No, I don't want to go on another weird brotherly bonding experience with you again."

"Yu-chan," Shiori said reasonably, "you just can't lock up things inside you. You need to deal with loss sooner or later. Kubler-Ross says that after Denial comes Anger, after Anger comes Bargaining, after Bargaining comes Depression, and only then will one reach Acceptance."

"Yeah, well no offense to Kublai-"

"Kubler-"

"_No offense to him, _but I am dealing with it just fine," Yuri said defiantly.

"No one who locks himself in his room is doing fine!"

"I wouldn't have to if you'd stop jumping out to drag me to god-knows-where; that stupid wilderness adventure intensive course when you had asthma...then there was the mountain retreat where we had to meditate, talk about our feelings and write bad haiku—after that you took me to a bar! I'm 16! I can't drink yet! Then you tried to force me to _bungee jump. _And the suicide prevention watch...I'm not suicidal! _You're _making me suicidal! So _please_ for both our sakes find another pet project to fix your attention to!"

"I wouldn't have to drag you if you'd just leave Denial Land you've been dwelling in the past year and a half now!"

"Go away."

"I'm just trying to help you."

"Oh you've helped me alright. I'm _way _past denial. You've gotten me angry, realized the futility of bargaining with you, and now I'm absolutely miserably _fed up._" They heard something being banged open. "If you won't stop hounding me—" here his voice became suspiciously more muffled "—then I'll just sleep over at Murata's house again."

"Yu-chan! You wouldn't dare!"

"Okay dear, but remember to wake up early for your outing tomorrow."

"Bye Mum!" The rustling of leaves and branches creaking was followed by a thud to the ground.

Shiori raced down the stairs, through the living room and out the backdoor, but was too late. Yuri was already sprinting merrily far away.

_Stubborn, reckless, little brat, _sniffed Shiori vexedly, before turning to glare at Yuri's partner in crime.

"I'm going to chop you to bits tomorrow," he proclaimed threateningly, irrationally outraged that he was foiled again by a stupid stunted _tree_ he planted with a lack of foresight under Yuri's window years ago. But who would have thought his cute little brother would one day grow to be such a delinquent as to run away from home?

_...Don't worry, Yu-chan, your big brother will save you, even from yourself! _

XXX

"Maa, I hate getting in between my best friend, and my best friend's brother like this," his right hand and alas best friend declared as he stood in the centre of his room, glasses glinting in the fluorescent light as he stroked his chin meditatively. "There's a soap opera out there with a love triangle like this, and it never bodes well for the third wheel. The things I do for love and friendship," Murata sighed, moved by his own selflessness. "And yet my friend—my one and only—the one I would willingly follow to hell and back, didn't even invite me to this group date tomorrow. _Oh,_ the betrayal! The neglect!"

He looked at Yuri with teary pleading eyes. "You didn't mean to forget me, did you? I'm the one that needs to find a girlfriend, you already have one!" he wailed when Yuri remained stubbornly uncooperative.

"_No_, and that's final. I finally have friends who don't think I'm secretly gay with you and I intend to let it stay that way. You know that you saying things like that is the reason why everyone in class last year thought we were an item."

"Well, you didn't help quell the rumors any by always coming to my defense when the bullies seek me out."

"Was I supposed to let you get beaten up?"

"I'm just saying, it was added fuel to the fire...And besides, would you deprive our classmates/fangirls the color and meaning that our_ illicit BL relationship_ gives to their lives? The Hephaistion to my Alexander, the Watson to my Sherlock, the _uke_ to my _seme. _(sigh) I miss the adulation..."

"You and I as—what!" he sputtered. "That makes no sense! How could _I_ be the uke in the relationship when I was the one—" he paused as he registered what he said.

"On second thought I don't really need to know."

"Well I guess compared to you I come off as more manly—"

"I said I don't want to know!"

"—It's a good thing we didn't continue being classmates this year, or you'd probably never gotten a girlfriend. How's Minami by the way? Is she still putting up with you?"

"Yes we're fine and what is that supposed to mean?"

"Well you're such a space case, I was half afraid someone else might have nabbed her under your nose."

"Of course not," Yuri scoffed, "Nami knows not let a good thing go when she sees it."

...

...

"I find that insulting." He glared.

"What are you talking about?" Murata raised his eyebrows, wide-eyed and quizzical; Yuri still got the impression that he was sniggering at him behind that perfectly open expression.

"That!" He motioned expansively at Murata from forehead to chin. "The 'I'm-laughing-at-you-behind-your-back-except-I'm-doing-it-in-front-of-your-face' face." He paused. "That doesn't come off quite well in translation."

"Now, now, Yuri," his friend soothed. "I'd never doubt Nami's loyalty; why, she'd be a fool to let such a thoughtful and devoted boyfriend slip. I'm just trying to initiate a much needed intervention here like any good friend should do. And as your wise counselor and resident love guru, I'm telling you now, if you want move to the next level of your relationship, you're going about it all wrong. Go to the park, take her out to a movie, hang out at home, _but do it with you and Nami alone. _Girls want to know that their boyfriends want them all to themselves. Apart from that you're golden. _Teen Hearts _say Nice Guys actually _don't _finish last, not in the romance stakes at least, and speaking of nice guys, you're positively an _angel-_figuratively speaking of course. Have you kissed her yet?"

Yuri stared at him for a moment. "Do you listen to yourself when you talk?" He dropped back on the bed so he could stare at the ceiling-in this way he wouldn't have to roll his eyes as was warranted. "Sometimes I wonder if the title 'the Sage' is really a whopping big misnomer."

Murata smiled benignly. "There's no shame in asking for help. If you want I can be your wingman tomorrow, make sure you can get some alone time with each other," he said eagerly. "Uh, how many girls—oh, and guys too of course!—did you say were coming?"

That earned him a glare. "No. I can do perfectly fine on my own date."

"..."

"Quit that."

XXX

_See, this is easy,_ he scoffed, handing over a great pink teddy bear to Minami as she bestowed another kiss on his cheek in gratitude.

Then she fanned him before he could expire from blushing madly.

_Baby steps, _he told himself as he offered aloud to get her drinks, his treat. _I _will _kiss her (on the lips!) before the end of this date! _

Having affirmed to himself his self-appointed goal, he set off for the frosty stand, bobbing and weaving his way past the crowd and back to her. "So...how about we go to the Ferris wheel, just the two of—"

"Rollercoaster! There it is! Hey, hey guys there's our stop!" Saito shouldered his way out front and dragged as many of his company as he could take, which unfortunately included the couple in the middle. Yuri tried to extricate himself and his girlfriend from their classmate's manacles-for-hands to no avail.

"Hey idiot, leave the lovebirds alone, they don't want to come with us," Haruka remonstrated their wayward friend much to the former Maou's relief.

Turning, he flashed her a grateful smile. "Thanks Haruka—"

"They want to go on the Water Dragon ride by themselves," she gave them a wink, and shooed them off. "Go on then, I'll make sure they don't bother you anymore." Everybody cheered them on, impressed by their pluck as even they daren't go on that death-defying ride.

"Uh, yeah, the Water Dragon ride. Haha." They obediently toddled off to the corresponding line to get their tickets, before Minami turned to him with a questioning glance.

"Were you saying something earlier Yuri...?"

"Uh no, not really. Oh-wow-the-line's-really-short-today-so-here-we-are!" He caught her by the hand and legged it to the last car and settled themselves there.

_Right. First this then the Ferris wheel, _he promised. _I'm a nice and romantic boyfriend. Our first real kiss—well the first one initiated by _me—_will be on the top of the Ferris wheel. _He nodded to himself, impatient to get this ride over with.

"Okay let's do this thing!"

XXX

_Sometimes I think fate just has too much fun screwing me over, _he thought miserably as he freewheeled in the air to gasps of spectators and former fellow passengers—then freefalled to the shallow water around the tracks. He braced himself for impact, hoping to get off with only skinned knees instead of broken limbs.

Instead he landed on a deep part of the water, his body sinking down down down.

Really, really deep part of the water. Almost bottomless it appeared.

_Wow. You'd never know there was a swimming pool below from up there. _

_Hey wait! I'm being __**dragged**__ down! Help! Minami! Somebody! _

He struggled to rise, faintly seeing Nami's shocked face and outstretched arms before he was pulled down even deeper into the murkiness.

Then he started whirling, around and around, down and down, to an underwater vortex. What _is _this? A whirlpool? A black hole? A ridiculously outsized drain? Whatever it was it was making him feel worse than seasickness or jetlag. The last time he was ever this _nauseated_ was when—Wait.

_Of course! I'm an idiot! _

He can't believe he'd forgotten; he was being sucked into another world!

_Thank Shinou! _he smiled joyfully, stopping panicking immediately. _I'm coming! I'm coming back everyone! _

_XXX _

He was spewed out, landing with a _splat _rather than a _splash, _floating spread eagled on top of the water_. _Aching bones and the urge to upchuck aside, he struggled manfully (because he _was_, take _that_ Murata) to wade to the bank of the—uh, _spring?_—he landed in. Collapsing on the ground coughing, he would have thankfully kissed it except, _yuck_, mud—and also, several pairs of boots were stomping in a ring over him.

"_Up!" _someone peremptorily demanded.

Blinking dazedly, he could vaguely make out the people shapes to be clad in the grey uniforms of Shin Makoku soldiers, which relieved him. For all he knew, he might have landed anywhere in the world, even in the heart of Big Shimaron, which would only be a little less bad than landing in a troupe of bloodthirsty dolphins.

Donning an awkward grin, he rose up to greet them, only to be man-handled back to his knees while someone demanded his name and purpose for trespassing within the castle grounds.

"Hey!" he yelped, feeling the scrape of rope on his wrists as he was trussed up. Despite the rough treatment, the fuzziness besetting his vision cleared and he looked up in absolute shock.

Who _are_ these sentries? He thought he knew _every_one in the castle by face if not by name (the soldiers especially were his obliging accomplices in escaping Gwendal and the dreaded paperwork), yet the entire squad apprehending him right now were completely unknown to him. And it was obvious they did not know him as well by the suspicious looks and arms-length treatment he was getting.

After a discussion of which they refused to make Yuri a party to, the entire company escorted him hastily yet cautiously to the throne room. They led him down an unfamiliar and unbearably lengthy hallway lined with the portraits of his predecessors. A sense of déjà vu nagged him all the way until the sight of two oversized pictures arrested him.

The portraits of the first Maou and the Daikenja hung side by side. He looked around the corridor once again. Then he turned towards his armed escorts and asked a touch incredulously, "Excuse me, but who whitewashed the great stone corridor _pink?_"

"Who cares? It's always been pink," snapped his left escort.

"_No _it has not!"

"For as long as I've been workin' here it is," said leftie.

"And how long ago was that Mr. Newbie? Did the Council decide to do a little remodeling while I was away?" he demanded cantankerously, vaguely realizing he was reacting a tad overboard about the whole thing, but he couldn't help himself.

Now instead of looking at him suspiciously as if he were a spy, they wore the worried looks of men confronted by a gibbering madman.

"Let's just continue onward," said the right guard slowly, "the Maou will deal with the likes of you."

Steering him forward, they led him to the end of the passage, where they waited to be announced beyond the massive double doors of the throne room.

Yuri was nearly hopping from foot to foot in his impatience to get this over with. He wanted to see a familiar face; anyone he could recognize and would recognize him in turn, so they could at last remedy this embarrassing little mistake-and he could then ask them _what in the Original King's name were they thinking. _

Who _was _the new Maou? Cheri-sama? Anissina? Seriously, _pink_? He might not be Maou anymore, but he had a citizen's right to protest such a desecration.

He was trying to remember to which of the Ten Nobles he was supposed to address his complaint to—Lord von Guild Hall or something?—when the doors swung wide open, an officious footman awaiting them on the other side.

"Bring—the prisoner—forth!" he proclaimed importantly.

The former Maou eagerly pushed ahead, almost overtaking his guard if they hadn't decided to form a tight circle around him, keeping him apart from the Maou and the rest of the hall.

The sight of the rest of the hall was what stopped him in his tracks.

The gathering, many richly dressed men and women, were giving him a wide berth as they advanced; some eyeing them with curiosity while others looked outright hostile. Servants darted in and out among them with platters of food or refilling wine cups or teacups as if this was a party in which he gatecrashed.

_Where the heck did _they_ come from?_ Were they really all here for an audience with the Maou or has he intruded on a special occasion of some sort? He didn't remember requiring so many attendants to wait on him before. Has things changed so much from the way he conducted matters when he was in power?

Prodding him onwards, his companions led him before the dais where the current Maou (whoever he was) was seated, forcing him to kneel with them.

"_Yuri?_"

He automatically glanced up at the sound of his name, the rich timbre of the other's voice as alien to him as everything else since he got here. He frowned in bemusement.

"Valtrana? Wolfram's _uncle_?"

A babble of outraged voices broke out as ire rained down on his head from the illustrious throng.

"_How dare you speak like—_"

"—_nonsense is he_—"

"—_may be cute but he's sure dumb—_"

"_**Silence**_."

"..."

"..."

"..."

That one stern word from the Maou, stilled the most vociferous and reduced the rest to muted whispers.

Valtrana got up from the throne and, to the consternation of everyone present, descended the steps. Ignoring the guards trying to put themselves between him and the possible assassin, he pushed them aside to stand in front of Yuri with wide intense eyes that traced the lines of his face.

Yuri in turn studied him with increasing puzzlement. Was it him or did Valtrana look a_ tad_ younger? And the edges of his features seemed softer, making him look more...beautiful than handsome. In fact, he now more closely resembled his nephew than he ever did befo—

"—_Wolfram?!_"

"Yes. I'm the Maou now." _Wolfram _turned around to look at the assembly eyeing them with barely concealed speculation. "This audience is at an end for today."

A ripple of bows and curtsies later the hall emptied out to leave only a few familiar faces. In the pregnant silence left behind, a broken sob to Yuri's right caught his attention.

"_OH—Your Majesty!_ _Is that really __**you**__?_" an overly dramatic voice called to him, causing Yuri to break out in an overjoyed smile.

"Gunter!" The former counselor at least, stayed fundamentally the same. There were deep grooves around his mouth, his hair lightened from pewter to platinum, but the extravagance of his joy hadn't diminished a jot. Yuri opened his arms wide and braced himself to be inevitably tackled—excepting it never came to pass.

Tears welled in big pearly drops in Gunter's eyes, as he looked absolutely overcome, profoundly shattered, and severely lovesick all at once. He took one trembling step, then another, and another...then gracefully fainted in a silvery heap on the floor before him.

"Gunter," Yuri sighed, also as used to this as he was to being assaulted. None of the others also paid much attention to such a usual occurrence as they continued to stare at Yuri in elation and disbelief, still not quite sure he wasn't an impostor.

Until he raised a hand to scratch the side of his head with a sheepish grin.

"Uh, guys...so I'm guessing I have a lot to catch up on, huh?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Tadaima!**

"What do you mean he got sucked down a manhole?" Murata said incredulously.

"_I'm so _sorry_, one minute he was sitting beside me and the next he was flying through the air behind us, and then there was a splash and he was __**gone. **__What should I do? How do I tell his parents? The firemen are taking _so long_ to locate the sewer, but it _has _to be there__—_" 

"Okay, calm down Minami. Deep breaths. I'll tell Yuri's parents what happened. I'm sure he'll surface anytime now on his own. I'll_—_I'll be _right there_ soon, okay? Okay? I'm hanging up now."

The Sage gave a profound sigh and took off his glasses to rub at his eyes.

"Oh no. I was afraid this might happen."

_I was hoping we would never return. At least, _you_ shouldn't, Yuri.  
_

* * *

Yuri squirmed uneasily under Gwendal's frowning regard, trying to be discreet about his own corresponding examination. Almost everyone he's met so far has aged. Was there no one of his acquaintance that was completely unchanged? Seriously, how long was he away?

Seeing Gwendal wasn't as much of a shock as seeing a grown-up Wolfram however. It was only like seeing the other man's physical age catch up with his mental one (meaning to say, now he had every right to act like an old man). Even so, Lord von Voltaire had managed to age gracefully. Not seemingly ageless as other Mazoku tend to be, but like a sturdy oak that's weathered a thousand storms.

Silver brushed his temples, and the crow's feet and wrinkled forehead added character to his face. He looked like a weathered explorer, or an ascetic hermit, especially with_—_

"Gwendal," Yuri said in hushed tones, "you have something on your face."

He reached out to poke at the other's chin, only for the latter to snatch at his hand with a dark glare.

"Heh," Yuri tittered nervously. "Not that there's anything wrong with a beard, it actually makes you look quite distinguished. Looks really good on you. Please don't crush my hand."

The older man gave a _slightly _threatening squeeze, before dropping it. He retreated behind his desk again and huffed irritably.

"Do you know how much paperwork your return from the dead is going to make?"

Yuri blinked. "Who said I was dead? Wait, you _told _everyone I was_ dead_?!"

The Mazoku gave an unconcerned shrug. "You died defeating Soushou. It seemed the simplest explanation for your disappearance." He gave him a cranky look. "How were we supposed to know you'd be able to come back under your own steam?"

"Ah, hehe, well, maybe rumors of my _un_death, could stay, you know, as just _rumors. _It would just complicate things too much if I pop back into existence to the public, there being a Maou already as it is. It might start a battle for sanction_—_for cessation_—_"

"Succession. Yes, our detractors might use this to trigger a battle for succession. This _must not_ be allowed."

The former Maou nodded his head vigorously. "Exactly. That's why I think I should go undercover, just to be safe." He was openly thrilled at the prospect.

Gwendal...nodded. "Perhaps you're right. Very well, I'll remand you to Yozak's care for the time being."

Yuri felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. "Um, Yozak? Does he still...you know, have that fetish for cosplay and, and_—_female undergarments?"

"He keeps up to date with the latest fashions as is necessary in his line of work, why?"

"On second thought, I could always go out of the country for a while, see the rest of the world_—_"

* * *

"_—_no seriously we don't have to do this, we could work something out_—__Shinou's temple!_ I could hide out among the priestesses (not gonna dress up as one though) like Murata used to do! No guys and few girls ever come there." Yuri was dragging his feet even as Gwendal ushered him inexorably towards Yozak's room.

"That was before we opened it up to the public twenty years ago."

"Open it to the public? Won't Shinou get mad if loads of strangers wander around his temple?"

"It isn't Shinou's temple any longer, not for the past seventy years since his presence was last felt by Ulrike. We have surmised that he has passed on. The temple is a place of remembrance now, instead of worship, where we celebrate feast days and other sacred ceremonies. It will be especially crowded this coming Yuri-Heika Day."

"Oh no...that's terrible. What happ_—_wait, I have a holiday?"

The door burst open as soon as they came near, and Yuri forgot all about what they were talking a moment ago in the face of the exuberant presence of Shin Makoku's resident spymaster.

"Young Master!" the redhead swept him up in a bone-crushing hug in lieu of Gunter. "You're really here! I half doubted my own sources but Conrad will be overjoyed to see you!" He wriggled to and fro with Yuri still in his grip.

"Hey Yozak. My, you look really fetching as a milkmaid. The poufy sleeves hide your muscles, although the moustache and goatee is kinda a giveaway."

"Yes, blue really makes my eyes pop don't you think?" he preened delightedly. "And my disguise isn't done. Look." He tied a flimsy scrap of cloth under his eyes as he batted them coquettishly. "See? I'm a mysterious masked milkmaid sneaking out in a secret tryst."

"Roleplay _and _cosplay. Goes well together. Well, if you're going on a mission, who are we to interrupt right? Why don't we come back later and_—_"

"I'm postponing that reconnaissance mission, Yozak. Something more important requires your attention. For an indefinite period, Yuri-Heika will be in your safekeeping until more...established arrangements can be made. I trust I can rely on your discretion."

Yuri watched in despair at Yozak's answering beam. "Of course my lord. You can count on me to watch over His Little Highness until Conrad comes back." The former Maou watched in dread as his newly appointed babysitter turned to him with a considering eye. "I think I know _just _the perfect disguise for you, darling."

* * *

"Waah! Are you sure ma'am? It was him? Honest to goodness _him_?" a scullery maid squealed in wide-eyed wonder.

"As sure as the sun sets on the east! Doria, tell them: you saw him didn't you?"

"It's true," the blond maid nodded assuredly to their rapt audience. "I could never forget his face, and I doubt there's anybody else like him in the whole world. It was Yuri-Heika, my word on it!"

Most of the castle staff taking a break (certainly not _loafing_) in the kitchens accepted it with alacrity; after all who among them knew Yuri-Heika better than the trusty Trio who had always served him? Besides even if it wasn't true, it made for exciting gossip didn't it? But one incredulous footman just wouldn't let it go at that.

"Are you sure you weren't feeling just a little _giddy_ considering your condition?" he challenged skeptically.

Doria glared at him. "I'm pregnant, not delusional. What are you implying?"

"Maybe, you know...you fainted with the strain and...dreamt it all up?"

"I WHAT?" she growled, puffing up alarmingly like a balloon about to burst.

"Stop upsetting her," Sangria censured sweetly and threateningly, "or you'll have her hubby and _us_ to answer to."

Quailing under their combined glares, nevertheless he persevered. "Begging your pardon madams, but, I can't really see it; let's say Yuri-Heika _did_ come back from the realm of the dead_—_to what purpose? Is he as Shinou once was, now Shin Makoku's guardian?"

"He wasn't a _spirit. _He was as alive as you are standing before me right now."

"So he wasn't dead? Are you saying he was alive all along, and he just_—_abandoned us? Is _that _what you're saying?"

"Don't put words on our mouths," Doria snapped, bristling. "Yuri-Heika would never_—_"

"Exactly. So he _can't_ be alive because he would never abandon us, and he _can't_ be a spirit that appeared _just now after all this time_ because of the same thing."

"Why you unspeakably pompous know-it-all_—_"

"Now, Doria, remember your blood pressure. Getting angry is a no-no," admonished Sangria soothingly.

"Yeah, who cares what this young man_—_" here Lasagna gave him a Look that made him squeak and scuttle back, "_—_thinks anyhow? We saw what we saw, we know what we know," she continued, voice lilting.

"Believe what you will, _we know _Yuri-Heika is back."

* * *

"They say Yuri-Heika's back."

A pause.

"What do you mean _Yuri who_? Which Yuri could it possibly be?"

...

"_No, _not Yuri the gardener."

...

"Nuh-uh, not Yuri the baker either...Uh, our cook's full name is actually Yuritch Elias Merkel, so he doesn't even figure."

Another pause-followed by a blown raspberry.

"Okay, so there are a lot of Yuris around here. But which famous figure in history were they all named for, hmm?"

...

"That is so sad, really it is, and you say you're so smart? How about I give you a hint_—_"

"AAAA #$%^&*!ARRGH!" a maddened shriek and breaking glass came from the chatty gentleman's captive audience. "Stop bothering me! What are you _doing here _in the first place?!"

Densham von Karbelnikoff sniffed snootily at his sister, blue eyes dancing despite (or because of) his sister's uncontainable ire.

"Excuse me, but I _wasn't_ talking to you," he huffed. "This is a _private _conversation. _Shhh, _don't pay attention to her, Peewee," he placated his other feathered companion. "She's intruding on our tête-à-tête. Where were we? Ah, yes. So, they say Yuri-_Heika_ has returned...you think it's true?"

Anissina scoffed as she swiped at a puddle of acid and threw the disintegrating rag on the bin. "_Please_, I'm a scientist. I deal with facts, not conjecture. There is no proof beyond unsubstantiated rumors of that happening, and I categorically _refuse _to believe it until I have seen His Highness with my own two eyes."

"...Again, was I _talking _to _you_? I'm sorry, but you're being rude, you know," he remonstrated. As if he wasn't the one to suddenly burst into her workspace, and sweep beakers and glass tubes aside to plop himself on her table.

"_Ahem, _sorry Peewee I keep getting distracted. Let me reiterate...do you really think His Highness, Defeater of Soushou, has come back from the depths of the underworld in order to avert another impending apocalypse and lead us all to the dawn of a new age of peace in the world_—_or do you think the people up in Blood Pledge has fallen victim to my sister's Mind-Boggling Illusion-kun?"

"They were not!" she snapped in outrage. "I always keep my equipment under firm lock and key; I'd never let my inventions go out of control as to_—_" she faced his lifted brow "_—_except maybe that one time but that was hardly my fault-"

"She likes to bluster so, doesn't she? Tsk, tsk. Hasn't she ever heard of the adage, 'To protest too much is to be suspect'?"

"Haven't you heard of, 'Be careful what you say, or you might not say anything anymore'?"

"Did you hear something Peewee? Do you think we're being affected by Illusion-kun too?" He suddenly yelped, dancing out of reach from his maddened sister's grasping hands. "No! Peewee! Save yourself!"

"Get out of here! And take your chicken with you!"

"I'll tell Yuri-Heika on you!"

"OUT!"

* * *

"Your Majesty?"

Wolfram did not turn from his contemplation of the window, but he made a gesture of acknowledgment to show he was listening. "Did you send the message?"

"Yes sire, the pigeon is winging its way to its target as we speak," Bantam, his secretary, bowed. There was no need to warn him against stealing a look inside the contents. As well as being efficient, he was the soul of discretion.

"Good, that'll be all...Wait! I want to talk to my brother."

"Which one, sire?"

"The dependable one."

"I will tell him, Your Majesty. Is there anything else?"

"...No, you may go."

He was still staring at his reflection when the aide bowed his way out_—_trying to recall what he looked like as a youth of eighty, and regretting having never paid any attention to his looks then. _When in the world did I get so old? _he lamented.

Yuri was still unchanged. Aside from being slightly taller, and slightly leaner in the face, he still possessed the same beautiful, exotic features, that guileless smile. As young-seeming and ageless as Ulrike.

Here. Not a dream.

He knew as Maou he should be more concerned about the ramifications of Yuri's return, whether he should step down and let the former Maou take his place. He tried so hard to uphold Yuri's legacy, his dream of peace, but he didn't have the other's charisma, that quality that drew others and made them trust Yuri so easily. It was an uphill battle to avert the war Big Shimaron and its allies are always gunning for.

He was just grateful that Yuri was back, against all odds. As long as he's here, he was certain all would turn out well.

* * *

Unbeknownst to him, another pigeon was wheeling away from Blood Pledge en route to the sea_—_heading straight for Small Shimaron. At the same time a rider was heading off at a ground-eating gallop to Shin Makoku's borders, a glinting raven crest pinned to his cloak.

Still unaware of several storms brewing on the horizon because that metaphorical butterfly couldn't stop flapping its wings, Yuri was resigning himself to a change in wardrobe and gender_—_although he was hard-pressed to go through with it when the matter of corsets and heels were brought up.

* * *

Hearing the despairing wails echoing off the walls, Wolfram smiled reminiscently. "Yes, all's right with the world."


End file.
